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Be Like Mike. the Catchphrase of One of the Most Memorable Ad Campaigns of All Time

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Be Like Mike. the Catchphrase of One of the Most Memorable Ad Campaigns of All Time Be Like Mike. The catchphrase of one of the most memorable ad campaigns of all time. The three simple words linked with the Gatorade commercial of 1992 convey a simple message. In order to be more like the superstar athlete, celebrity and role model Michael Jordan, consumers should drink Gatorade. Flash forward twenty-eight years and a new three-word slogan takes center stage in an NBA ad, Black Lives Matter. While sharing the same word count, the phrase goes much further in meaning. The phrase promotes ideas of bringing awareness to racial injustice, systemic inequality, and social justice. Whereas the original ad blended footage of Michael Jordan’s athleticism on the court and his interactions with fans, this new campaign portrays the league’s current generation of stars as activists. Videos and images depict stars from across the league attending and speaking at protests against racial injustice. These ads are starkly different, depicting America’s that do not appear remotely similar. Jordan’s ad was created in a time where America was both ignorant and unready to have the important dialogues seen today. What the 1992’s Be Like Mike and 2020’s The Truth is that Black Lives Matter ads do share is a reliance on a specific Kairos as well as rooting their rhetoric in different pathos and an ethos related commonplace. The idea of Kairos plays heavily in both ad campaigns yet uses the concept in wholly different ways to persuade. The Be Like Mike ad Campaign relies on several key factors for its rhetorical situation. Primarily, the ascension of Michael Jordan over the course of the early 1990’s created a unique moment in time for his utilization in an ad campaign. In 1992, Jordan won back to back NBA Championships. After a career filled with the inability to reach the pinnacle of basketball, Jordan was able to rapidly win two trophies. Following the successful NBA season, he led the United States basketball program to international fame with a Gold Medal in the 1992 Summer Olympics. On a team filled with the NBA’s brightest American stars and storied names, Jordan was able to prevail as the dominant figure during the Olympics. On top of his stardom, Jordan also boasted a role model’s clean record. This clean record would later be tarnished by gambling controversies as well as accusations of being a vicious teammate. This exact time in the history of Michael Jordan and American popular culture allowed for the Be Like Mike campaign to be a tremendous success. Be Like Mike exists on the near opposite end of the spectrum to the more recent ad campaign launched by the NBA. First, the ad is unable to capitalize off the stardom of any single basketball player. With the rise of social media, each NBA player has developed a following, which arguably diminishes the impact the greatest stars can have as figures off the court. Far more important to the Kairos of the NBA campaign is the overall shift in perception of one key issue in America. As Americans have been exposed to case after case of tragic death among the African American community at the hands of law enforcement, general beliefs about racial injustice and police brutality have changed. Americans are now willing to engage in dialogue and participate in social activism far more than in past years. The deaths of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor brought on protests unseen on such a scale in America for many years. This shift towards accepting progressive messages on the issue allowed for corporations such as the NBA to create well-received ad campaigns condemning police brutality. As sports leagues go, the NBA has a particularly unique situation as it is truly international. This campaign works extraordinarily well for where America is as a nation as a people, yet a similarly progressive campaign would not work in other markets. The clearest example of this is intricate relationship the league has with China and the CCP. In order to reach the massive potential Chinese market, the league must tread lightly with regards to Chinese political issues. Recently, the GM of the Houston Rockets created controversy for the league by coming out in support of Hong Kong protesters. While NBA figures such as players and executives are encouraged to be progressive where the NBA can benefit, the league still operates as a business. For this campaign, much like Be Like Mike, American culture and significant events created a moment in time where this ad campaign could thrive. Where Be Like Mike and the Truth is BLM campaign appear similar is the importance of pathos to persuading their audiences. At the same time, their uses of pathos are absolutely distinct from one another. With Be Like Mike, Gatorade is clearly attempting to generate a happy and joyful response from the audience. The ad is filled with scenes of excited children interacting with Jordan and playing basketball. Interlaced with the scenes of basketball is a montage of Jordan merrily enjoying a Gatorade product. What truly makes the ad memorable is the original song that can only be described as straight from a delightful children’s movie. The visuals and audio create positive feelings of emotion in an audience, to the point where even an adult would potentially feel childhood memories rush back. This reinforcement of positivity combines with the product placement to successfully market Gatorade to the consumer. The Truth is BLM campaign also relies on pathos to convey a message. The video opens to text slowly appearing on the screen, stating “The truth is racism is everywhere”. Still images and videos of NBA stars at protests plays before another line of text appears. The message calls on Americans to speak out and do more to end injustices. The text and visuals combine well to inspire a fierce desire in audience members to do more. The message may cause discomfort with some viewers but allows for them to question their own biases. As the video ends, several “we will” statements create hope among audience members, allowing for the ad to be an emotional journey. Both ad campaigns use emotional appeals in order to convey a message, but both the desired emotional responses and the messages themselves are different entirely. Much like their similarities with regards to pathos, the two videos are linked by a use of ethos and a commonplace. That commonplace is how the public views athletes as reputable speakers on a product or issue. Whether they are deserving of such clout or not, the American people have decided collectively that athletes are good endorsements for a product or movement. This commonplace is linked with the ethos of such speakers. Because these athletes are known as hard workers and successful, their endorsement means more than the average person. In both ads, the celebrity of these athletes creates an appeal. Arguably, the credibility and celebrity of these athletes lends to different appeals in each ad. First, Jordan’s credibility at the time as mentioned prior was impeccable. An unmatched athlete as well as being the league’s most focused and committed player allowed Jordan to boast fantastic credibility with the public. Because of this credibility, every aspect of the Gatorade campaign is catered to his figure. The tagline, “Be Like Mike”, the original song professing wishes to follow his path, and his repeated appearances throughout the ad are revealing of the ad’s reliance on him. Jordan’s ad relies far more on his personal credibility than the NBA BLM ad relies on any one figure’s credibility. Each shot in the more recent ad shows a different NBA player, few from the same teams. While not relying on the personal credibility of the athletes, the ad relies on the league’s overall credibility. No player has ever been able to match Jordan either on the court with skill or off of the court with far-reaching celebrity. The advent of social media and its integration with sports has made one figure standing out among its peers like Jordan impossible. Knowing this, the ad focuses more on the powerful image of seeing so many professional athletes stand behind one movement and one goal. The last 28 years has seen a massive shift in America. Whereas once it would have been expected for NBA stars to appear in ads for commercial products, that role has expanded to include social activism on an expanded scale. What has not changed over this period is the near universal effectiveness of rhetoric. In both adverts, the use of principle rhetorical concepts including Kairos and commonplace create effective persuasion. Further, the use of Aristotle’s concepts of ethos and pathos add to the effectiveness of the goals desired to be reached. .
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